Top Tube Tips

Holmes Mann’s cardboard tubes offer the ideal solution for protecting items in transit, but they also provide a wealth of opportunities for anyone with an imagination.

Perhaps you regularly receive items in cardboard tubes or are busy packing your valuable possessions ready for a move. Plan ahead and do not be tempted to throw away these versatile items after they arrive from your cardboard tube suppliers. Instead, read on to discover some of the many uses they can have at home, in the office or in the garden.

Cord Protectors

Why spend a fortune buying expensive cord protectors when a cardboard tube will do the job just as well. Simply split a tube up one side and then cut into different lengths before slipping your cords inside. This will make your environment look instantly more organised, reduce the tripping risk and protect cables from inquisitive children or pets.

Kids’ Crafts

Take unwanted cardboard tubes home or give them to a local nursery or playgroup to provide hours of fun. One of the best ways to use them is to create rainmakers or maracas by half-filling sections of tubes with rice, pasta, or beans and then sealing the ends with duct tape.

Composting Help

Throw sections of tube on to your compost heap, where they will decompose and create helpful pockets of air. This is a good way of solving the problem of bad smells or flies.

Seedling Pots

Cut a tube into two-inch sections and then put them in rows in a large tray. Fill each with soil and then add your seedlings.

Carrier-Bag Holder

More and more shops are now charging for carrier bags, so use tubes to keep yours safe and ready to use again. Make two holes in the top of a tube and add a string hanging handle. Stuff with bags, making sure that the tube is not so long that you cannot reach the ones at the bottom.

Hamster Toy

Simply drop a section of tube into the cage of your hamster or gerbil to give them somewhere to sleep or play. You can even make circular holes at intervals along the length of the tube so they can pop in and out.

Tidy Desk

Cut a cardboard tube to size and then let your children decorate it. This is a perfect place to store your pens and it will act as a permanent reminder of home whilst you are at work.

Bird Feedercardboard tubes and boxes, you can be sure to find the right materials for even the most unconventional of applications. So get creative. The possibilities are endless.